Convert PDF to Excel (.xlsx)
Convert PDF tables into editable Excel spreadsheets. Best results on PDFs that started life as spreadsheets.
Drag & drop a file
or browse from your computer · max 100 MB
Converting a PDF to Excel turns locked-up data back into a workable spreadsheet — formulas, sorts, pivots, the works. Best results come from PDFs that started life as spreadsheets (financial reports, data exports, lab results); PDFs originally written in Word with embedded tables convert too but may need cleanup. PDFOnly uses LibreOffice's PDF import to reconstruct the spreadsheet structure, preserving table boundaries, numeric formatting, and multi-sheet organization where the source supports it. For pure table extraction without the rest of the document, see Extract Tables.
How to pdf to excel step by step
- 1
Upload the PDF
Drop your PDF. We accept files up to 100 MB free, 200 MB on Pro. PDFs with multiple pages of data work fine — we stitch tables that span pages.
- 2
We detect tables and reconstruct cells
LibreOffice's PDF import identifies table regions and infers column boundaries from the visual layout. Numeric formatting is detected (currency symbols, percent signs, date patterns) and applied to the output cells.
- 3
Download your .xlsx
Open in Excel, Google Sheets, or LibreOffice Calc. Numbers are real numbers (so SUM, AVG, etc. just work). Multi-sheet structure is preserved when the source PDF has clear section breaks.
Why pdf to excel on PDFOnly
Numbers come through as numbers
Many PDF-to-Excel tools paste the table as a single column of text strings. Excel formulas don't work on those. We type-detect and output proper numeric cells.
Multi-page table stitching
When a table runs across pages (typical of bank statements, long financial reports), we detect the continuation and produce one unified spreadsheet rather than fragmenting per page.
OCR for scanned PDFs
If your PDF is a scan, we run OCR first (auto-detected) then extract. Most tools fail silently on scans.
What people use pdf to excel for
A few common scenarios. If your workflow looks like one of these, this tool is a good fit.
Recover an Excel file that was sent as PDF
Your supplier sent the price list as a PDF instead of the original Excel. Convert it back so you can sort, filter, and integrate into your own workbook.
Pull data from financial statements
Income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow tables in 10-Q filings extract into Excel for your own modeling and ratio analysis.
Migrate legacy PDF reports to a database
Years of monthly reports archived as PDFs become structured data again. Convert each to Excel, then bulk-import into your data warehouse.
Process a scanned data table
OCR + Excel conversion in one pass. Useful for digitizing handwritten or printed lab results, survey responses, or inventory lists.
What you get
- Output is a real .xlsx that opens in Excel, Google Sheets, LibreOffice Calc
- Numeric values come through as numbers (not text), so Excel formulas work immediately
- Multi-page tables stitched into one continuous spreadsheet
- Currency, percentages, and dates inferred from the PDF's formatting
- Handles both digital and scanned PDFs (OCR runs first on scans)
- Files auto-deleted within an hour, never used to train AI
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is the conversion?
On clean PDFs that originated as spreadsheets: 95%+ accuracy. On PDFs originally written in Word with embedded tables: 80-90%, may need column-width or merged-cell cleanup. On complex multi-column financial reports with overlapping data: 70-85%, expect to spot-check.
Will formulas come through?
No — PDFs don't store formulas, only the calculated values. The output Excel has those values as static numbers. If you need the original formulas, get the source .xlsx file from whoever produced the PDF.
What about merged cells?
Merged cells in the source PDF stay merged in the output Excel. If a financial report has 'Total Revenue' spanning two columns, the output preserves that merge.
Can it handle scanned PDFs?
Yes. We auto-detect scans (image-only PDFs) and run OCR first to extract the text, then convert to Excel. Accuracy depends on scan quality — 300 DPI clean scans work best.
What's the difference between this and Extract Tables?
PDF to Excel converts the entire PDF (text and tables) into a multi-section Excel file. Extract Tables pulls just the tables out, ignoring surrounding text. Use Extract Tables when you only want the tables; use PDF to Excel when you want a fuller representation of the document.
Will it preserve charts?
Charts in PDFs are typically rendered as static images. We embed them in the output Excel as images (not editable charts). To get editable charts, you need the original .xlsx — PDFs don't preserve enough chart metadata.
Does it support multi-sheet output?
Yes — when the source PDF has clear section breaks (e.g. one page per quarter or one section per department), each section becomes its own sheet in the output workbook.
Ready to pdf to excel?
Free to use for the basics. Files are auto-deleted within an hour and never used to train AI.
Open PDF to Excel